


Redundant

by oh_johnny



Category: Green Day
Genre: F/M, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-07-01
Updated: 2015-07-01
Packaged: 2018-04-07 04:55:34
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,766
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4250166
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/oh_johnny/pseuds/oh_johnny
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Mike is miserable. So is Billie Joe. And Adie is just fed up.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Redundant

**Author's Note:**

> I am in the process of archiving my old work from Coming Clean on lj over here, which explains why the personal references are out of date. This is not new fic, but it might be new to you.

He stood against the wall at the far side of the room and watched as Billie Joe was pounced on by his wife and kids, one hand on each of the boy's heads as Adie wrapped herself around him, his nose buried in her neck. He smiled as he watched them, the love shining from all of them, the boys talking excitedly at their Dad trying to get six weeks of news into the first six minutes. Billie Joe opened his eyes briefly and looked over Adie's shoulder at Mike, giving him a long slow wink before turning back to his family. Mike pushed himself off the wall then and headed out to the car that would take him to Stella, waiting for him with the babysitter at the house. He was looking forward to time spent with his daughter, to the girlish chatter about sleepovers and cute baby animals and, God help him, boy bands and reality tv (shouldn't Nick and Jessica have just, like, _gone away_ by now?); to feeling her wrap her arms around his neck and tell him she loved him; to putting her to bed at night and stroking her hair as she fell asleep, but he couldn't help one last backwards glance at Billie Joe before getting into the car. 

It had been like this for so long now that he'd almost forgotten it had ever been any different. 

Almost.

***********  
”Mike?”

“Yeah?”

“What do you think about guys that are...um...you know...gay or, like, bi?”

“I don't know. What should I think?”

“Well, I mean...does it bother you?”

“No. Why should it? People should do what they want. Not my business unless they want to do it with me.”

“Yeah, but, what if a guy wanted to do it with you?”

“Do what with me?”

“Well, you know, stuff. Sex stuff. Gay sex stuff.”

“With me?”

“Yeah.”

“Shit, Billie, I don't know. I guess it'd depend on the guy. I mean, I like girls, you know?”

“Yeah, I know.”

“So, maybe. You know, if he was cute and I liked him and, I don't know, if I was really, really drunk. Why? You know someone who's hot for me?”

“Um...yeah. Here, have another drink”

*********  
And so it had begun.

A kiss at first, hesitant, both of them afraid of what was to come, Billie Joe just beginning to acknowledge his sexuality, Mike pretty sure he was straight but undeniably attracted to his best friend and willing to experiment with him.

They'd laughed it off, at first. It was nothing, a little fooling around, friends getting each other off. Even when it had progressed to more than just kissing, even when they'd started touching each other, started fondling and caressing and licking and sucking, frantic hand jobs in the bathroom and late night explorations in Mike's bedroom, they'd always maintained that they were just friends. Nothing more.

So when Billie had found Adie and it had been obvious to everyone that this woman was one to hang on to, when it became clear that Billie would be with Adie as long as she was willing to put up with him, well, then, it was all okay. No big deal. They had just been friends having a bit of fun, after all.

************  
He loved being on stage more than anything else in the world. The power of the music flowing through them and out into the crowd, the way people reacted, the adrenaline high, all contributing to the joy which bubbled up inside him as they played. And then add watching Billie into the mix. Jesus but he was brilliant in front of a crowd. A born front man, racing around the stage, the audience eating from the palm of his hand, doing everything he asked, no matter what he asked. He became more outrageous every time he went on stage, his energy infectious.

And when they stood together at the end of the show, waving and blowing kisses to the crowd, Mike could feel the heat radiating from Billie until one night he could stand it no longer and had grabbed Billie as they came off stage, pushing him into a room and up against the wall, tongue in his mouth, hands down his pants, moaning his name. Billie had responded in kind, eagerly pulling at Mike's clothes until they stood together naked, rocking against each other, months and years of pent-up passion expended in a groaning writhing rush of ecstasy. 

***************  
When that tour had ended they'd gone back to their lives, to their families, gone back to being just friends, friends who didn't get naked together. And that had been the pattern – lovers on tour, friends off – and they'd kept it up for what seemed like forever.

Except, things had been a little different this time.

****************  
“Morning.”

“Mm.”

“Coffee's here.”

“Mmmm.”

“But you're going to have to open your eyes for it.”

“Ugh. Can't you just feed it to me?”

“I tried that once, remember? We ended up spilling it and you nearly got a burn in a very unpleasant place.”

“Oh. Yeah. Right. Shit.”

“So wake up.”

“Don't wanna.”

“Mikey, come on. We've got that radio show to do and you need to be fully awake for it.”

“Why? They only want to talk to you anyway.”

“Yeah, but someone's gotta keep Tre amused or God only knows what he'll say.”

“Is that how you're going to introduce me? Mike Dirnt, bass player and drummer wrangler?”

“You wanted something else? Bass player, drummer wrangler and giver of award-winning head? Biggest dick in the band? Mike Dirnt, the man I've been secretly in love with for the past sixteen years?”

“What?”

“What what?”

“What did you say?”

“Biggest dick in the band? I mean physically, you understand, not personality wise. Because that would be me.”

“No, no, no. The man you've been in love with?”

“Oh. Yeah.”

“Billie...”

“Well, yeah. What did you think? I'm just screwing you because I miss my wife?”

“But love?”

“Yes. Love. I love you, Mike.”

************  
And yet there he had stood, happy in the arms of his family, ready to head off home with them and leave Mike behind. Again. Like always. Shouldn't love be...well...different?

It was good to be home, there was no denying that, sleeping in his own bed, spending time with Stella. But he missed his friends. All three of them were so happy to be with their kids that there didn't really seem to be time to get together. At least, that's what he told himself when three weeks had gone by and he hadn't heard a word from Billie Joe.

Stella had gone back to her mom, what with school starting up, and he was back to living like a bachelor. It was fun, as long as you didn't think about it too carefully.

When the knock on the door came he figured it was a delivery of some kind. Who else would be knocking at the door at nine in the morning? He sure wasn't expecting Adie, but there she was, coming in through the door before he'd had a chance to invite her in. She took in the take out boxes and the still-packed suitcase in the middle of the living room floor as well as his wardrobe choice of boxers and stained t-shirt and shook her head, muttering something about overgrown children, then sat down on the sofa.

“We have to talk,” she said.

“We do? About what?”

“About the fact that my husband is in love with you and has become a complete pain in the ass to live with.”

He stared at her for a minute, coherent thoughts refusing to form in his brain, then he sat down, slowly.

“Adie, I...um...what?”

“Don't tell me you don't know this. You do. I know you do. He told me you do.”

“He...what?”

“Look, coming off the tour this time Billie wasn't himself. He was trying, but it just wasn't working. He was moping around the house making all of us crazy. So I got him drunk and made him tell me what was going on. Apparently you've been screwing my husband behind my back.”

“I...uh...well...what?”

“So first I got mad. Then I got sad. Then I asked him if he wanted a divorce. Turns out he doesn't. Turns out he loves me. Except, he also loves you. And it's tearing him apart. From the look on your face and the state of this place, I'm guessing it's having the same effect on you.”

“Shit, Adie. I'm sorry. I'm really, really sorry. I'll, shit, I don't know, go away or something.”

“You fucking won't.”

“I...what?”

“I'm beginning to see what he sees in you – such wonderful conversation. Look, Mike, I love Billie. I've always known he's bi. I've always known that he made a choice when he married me but that it could have gone another way, that he could have ended up loving a man that much. And now it turns out he does. He loves you, and from what he tells me, he loves you pretty much in the same way that he loves me. And it's making him miserable. So we have to work this out.”

“Work it out how? You're his wife, the mother of his children. Like you said, he wants to be with you.”

“And he's going to stay with me. But the three of us need to talk about this. He's miserable without you and I can't have that. So I'm taking you home with me and we will figure this out. There's got to be a way. Fortunately, you're already packed, so go put on something less disgusting and come with me.”

“I...what?”

“Jesus, Mikey, if you're going to live with us I hope to God you can figure out the whole coherent speech thing.”

“Live with you? With you and Billie? Like...all three of us?”

“Don't get your hopes up – I don't do threesomes. But we've got a spare room and the kids love you and you're all alone here and clearly you can't look after yourself and Billie is in love with you. So, yeah. All three of us.”

So he put on clean clothes and followed Adie to the car and when they got to the house Billie Joe came out and hugged him and pulled him inside and when he looked at them both in wonder and awe Billie Joe just shrugged and said, “Sometimes I love you's not enough.”


End file.
